Open web structural supports in general, and in particular, structural trusses are used for the fabrication of buildings in the construction industry. Open web supports are used to form a variety of building structural segments, while the primary application of structural trusses is to define a desired roofline and to support the roof by the building walls and interior structure. Trusses are typically fashioned from a series of joined vertical, horizontal, and angled members. Historically, trusses have been fabricated from wooden members joined by flat metal plates having a plurality of spiked projections therefrom for driving the plates into the wooden members and retaining the members in a joined relationship.
In recent years, metal trusses and metal open web structural supports have gained favor in the construction industry. Metal supports are typically comprised of metal U-channels and square tubular members with the members being joined by mechanical fasteners.
When added to a building structure, metal supports are primarily in a parallel spaced apart relationship. The triangular construction of the supports make them particularly strong with respect to forces applied within the plane of the support. However, because the supports are primarily planar in nature, they are vulnerable to buckling when lateral forces are applied to the supports. Consequently, to further rigidify the building structure created by the supports, lateral or cross-bracing between supports must be added. The cross-braces extend between a plurality of supports wherein the brace is fastened to the support using mechanical fasteners. The attachment points of the cross-brace to the supports are typically determined by individually measuring the proper spacing between supports to insure proper alignment. Such a process is time consuming and adds to the construction time and effort during the erection of the building.
There is a need for a cross-bracing system which is easy to install, provides accurate placement of the supports, and provides sturdy cross-bracing of the supports to prevent buckling.